When installing a software application, or a suite of software applications, a software installation process is generally executed to perform the actual transfer of computer files from a computer-readable medium (e.g., a compact disc (CD) or a digital video disc (DVD), flash memory, or similar) to a fixed disk or hard drive of the target computer system. Even when software is downloaded over a network, and then installed directly from a fixed disk or hard drive, the installation of the software application(s) will typically result in the transfer of certain files from one location to another, and/or the manipulation of certain operating system settings (e.g., registry settings), before the software applications are considered to be installed and are fully executable. In some instances, certain software applications may be distributed, either individually or as a suite of applications, along with protected content (e.g., other software applications, or digital content). For example, a software vendor may distribute a video editing software application along with one or more codecs (coder-decoders) from one or more third parties. In such a scenario, the third-party provided codecs may be considered protected content, such that the installation of the protected content on to the target computer system will result in the software vendor paying the third party a royalty or license fee. Accordingly, installation of protected content typically requires that license information (e.g., a serial number) be provided by the end-user.
For example, in FIG. 1, a computer-readable storage medium 10 is shown storing three point products (e.g., software applications 1, 2 and 3), and two items of protected content (e.g., protected content 1 and protected content 2). In this example, the protected content items may represent third-party codecs, plug-ins, or other add-on components that operate in conjunction with the software applications. In any case, during the installation of the software applications, an installer application 12 is executed at the target computer 14. The installer 12, prior to transferring any protected content to the fixed disk of the computer system 14, will prompt the end-user to provide license information, such as a serial number. With conventional software installation procedures, the installation of all protected content on a particular computer-readable storage medium is subject to the validation of the same serial number. Accordingly, if the serial number entered by the end-user is determined to be valid, all protected content on the computer readable storage medium 10 is automatically installed on the target computer system. Consequently, software vendors are required to bundle and distribute applications and protected content in a variety of different configurations in order to protect certain content from unauthorized installation and use.